Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi pledged to assist the Caricom countries in several sectors, including cancer treatment, millet growing, yoga instruction, and ferries. On November 20, he spoke at the Caricom-India Summit in Guyana.
When Modi arrived in Guyana at midnight on November 19, after attending the G20 conference in Brazil, Guyanese President Dr. Irfaan Ali gave him the keys to Georgetown.
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He spoke to Caricom officials in Hindi the following day, and interpreters translated his words into English. According to Modi, “India has always worked together with Caricom to address challenges whether it was COVID, natural disasters, capacity building or development work. India has moved forward, shoulder to shoulder with all of you, as a trustworthy partner.”
When the inaugural Caricom-India Summit was conducted in 2019 on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly, he praised the advancements achieved on “several new and positive initiatives” that were addressed.
“In order to strengthen future co-operation, I would like to place before you some suggestions.”
He added, “These proposals are based on seven key pillars. These pillars are CARICOM.”
He progressively unveiled the acronym he uses to stand for: Ocean Economy; Medicine and Healthcare; Agriculture and Food Security; Renewable Energy and Climate Change; Innovation, Technology, and Trade; Cricket and Culture; and Capacity Building. He claimed that India has provided Caricom with technical assistance, training, and scholarships in the area of capacity building.
The audience cheered enthusiastically, “Today, I propose an additional 1,000 slots for IT scholarships given by India over the next years.”
“In order to promote the technical training and skills development of youth, we had set up a technical development center in Belize. We will expand its scale and size so that it can be used by all Caricom countries.”
“We will also work on creating a forensic centre for the Caricom region.”
According to Modi, India developed the IGOT platform to support ongoing capacity building for government personnel in his nation.
“On this portal there are online courses available in areas such as technology, administration, law and education. A similar portal can be created for Caricom countries.”
He referred to India as “the mother of democracy” and stated that his nation was also prepared to teach the lawmakers in this area.
Regarding Agriculture and Food Security, he said that India has transformed its farming industry thanks to drones, digital farming, mechanization, and soil testing.
He claimed that because of the crop’s significance, India has promoted millet in accordance with a recent UN announcement that 2023 would be the Year of Millet.
“Millets are a super food that can grown in any kind of climate.”
He added, “For Caricom countries as well this can become an effective means of addressing climate change and improving food security.”
Sargassum seaweed, according to Modi, is a major issue in the Caribbean that has an impact on the lodging and travel industries. “In India we have developed a technology to make fertiliser using this seaweed. This technology can not only help you to solve this problem but can also increase crop yields. India is ready to share all these experiences with Caricom countries.”
Regarding climate change and renewable energy, he stated that everyone should prioritize addressing environmental issues.
According to Modi, he has established global partnerships in the fields of biofuels, solar energy, and disaster-resilient infrastructure. He welcomed member states to join the other alliances, expressing his satisfaction that Caricom had joined the solar alliance.
He added, “We propose we can help make at least one government building solar-powered in each of the Caricom countries.”
Regarding innovation, technology, and trade, he stated that India is a center for technological start-ups, with products that have endured and satisfied the demands of the country’s incredibly diversified population. According to him, India Stack, the country’s public digital infrastructure, has transformed every area of the Indian economy.
“Today in India, direct benefit transfers are being made to millions of people with just one click.” He said that nations including the United Arab Emirates, Singapore, France, Sri Lanka, Nepal, and Mauritius are now linked to UPI, or the Unified Payment Interface, which was developed in India.
“It is my suggestion that we work together for its adoption by Caricom countries as well.” He cited another ICT platform.
According to Modi, India has created an e-market site to facilitate and guarantee transparency in public procurement, “For the common man to be able to store all documents carefully, we have made the cloud-based DigiLocker Platform. We can start this as a pilot project in Caricom countries as well.”
“On this portal everything from medical equipment to computers, furniture and even kids toys are available. We will be happy to share this a portal with Caricom countries.”
After that, Modi enumerated the five T’s for a potential India/Caricom partnership: trade, technology, tourism, talent, and tradition.
Modi noted, “In order to promote these five T’s we can create an online portal to connect the private sector and stakeholders of all countries.”
He said that India was making rapid progress in the small and medium-sized business (SME) sector as well (ostensibly addressing “Trade”).
At the inaugural Caricom-India Summit, Modi remembered, India had provided a US$1 million grant for SME enterprises. “We must accelerate its implementation.”
He reportedly made reference to “Technology” when he claimed that India has improved space technology. “By leveraging space technology, we can work together in areas such as resource mapping, climate studies and agriculture in Caricom countries.” He said that India will deploy a satellite for climate and environmental monitoring by 2027 and promised to share the data with other nations, particularly those in the global south, which includes the Caricom countries.
After mentioning cricket and culture, Modi went back to the list of the seven pillars of the CARICOM acronym.
“Cricket is a big and important connecting link between our countries, whether the final of the 1983 Cricket World Cup, or IPL. India has a special attachment to cricketers from the West Indies. The T20 World Cup here this year has increased the attraction of Indian cricket fans towards the Caribbean.”
He noted, “I don’t think it is just because India won the World Cup here.”
Modi proposed improved cricket ties between Caricom and India, highlighting the development of young female cricket players from each Caricom country.
In what appeared to be a cultural speech, Modi suggested that the Caricom nations host an event called The Days of Indian Culture.
“With the popularity of Bollywood, we can also organize a film festival along with Caricom countries.”
He discussed maritime security in addition to the ocean economy, “I propose that in order to enhance connectivity in this region, we supply passenger and cargo ferries.”
Modi referred to hydrography and marine cartography, “Last year Caricom launched a maritime security strategy. In this strategy to fight drug trafficking, piracy, illegal fishing (and) human trafficking, untapped potential for economic cooperation has also been underlined.”
“India would be happy to enhance cooperation with all of you in all of these areas.”
Regarding medicine and healthcare, he stated that India placed a great premium on health security in Caricom. According to him, India prioritizes providing the general public with high-quality, reasonably priced healthcare.
He said that India has established certain health facilities in this regard and that it can do the same in the Caricom nations.
Modi said that if Caricom nations agreed to recognize India’s pharmacopeia—an official list of medications—this initiative might go more quickly.
“We will also consider setting up drug testing labs in Caricom countries.”
He said that cancer was an issue in the Caricom nations and that India might provide the Siddharth Two cancer treatment equipment.
He promised to address trauma in isolated Caricom communities, “We would be happy to provide these remote hospitals to our friends in Caricom.”
He suggested that yoga instructors from India may travel to Caricom nations to assist fight diabetes and hypertension.
He recalled that the United Nations declared 2015 to be a Day of Yoga, “We can make this a part of the school curriculum to encourage introduction from a young age.”
In conclusion, Modi said, “All of these are based on your priorities and your needs. That is the core principle of our co-operation.”
He added, “I seek to hear you views on these. Thank you.”
The Prime Minister and other Caricom leaders later thanked India for its generosity and pledged to further their connection, according to a statement from the Office of the Prime Minister (OPM).
According to Dr. Rowley, India is one of Trinidad and Tobago’s oldest allies, having maintained diplomatic ties for many years.
To make sure the suggested actions are carried out, he suggested that Caricom and India form a standing committee.
Rowley and Modi also had bilateral discussions on improving and expanding their relationship in the areas of national security, digital transformation, and cybersecurity training. According to an OPM statement, during the 2019 Caricom-India summit, they talked about working together on climate change and renewable energy projects using a US$150 million credit line from India.
